Warrior Citizen Magazine

VOLUME 62 NO. 1 2017

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE U.S. ARMY RESERVE

WARRIOR CITIZEN

THE ARMY’S TOP NCO FOR 2016 Sgt. 1st Class Moeller takes on the Army’s best

AMERICA’S ARMY RESERVE

CHAOS IN GUBA

Preparing future leaders for an evolving battlefield

In this sun-bleached desert village not all is what it seems

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WARRIOR CITIZEN ARMY RESERVE COMMAND TEAM Lt. Gen. Charles D. Luckey Chief of Army Reserve and Commanding General, U.S. Army Reserve Command Steve Austin, Assistant Chief of Army Reserve Chief Warrant Officer 5 Russell Smith Command Chief Warrant Officer of the Army Reserve WARRiOR CiTizEN STAFF Col. Gerald Ostlund Director, Army Reserve Communications Franklin Childress, Deputy Director, Army Reserve Communications Melissa Russell, Editor-in-Chief, Warrior Citizen Phillip Valentine, Executive Editor Master Sgt. Thomas O’Hara, Contributing Editor Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, Contributing Public Affairs NCO SuBMiSSiONS • Warrior Citizen invites articles, story ideas, photographs and other material of interest to members of the U.S. Army Reserve. Manuscripts and other correspondence to the editor should be addressed to usarmy.usarc.ocar.mbx.warrior-citizen@ mail.mil. All articles must be submitted electronically or on disk or CD. Unsolicited manuscripts and photographs will not be returned.

CHANGE OF ADDRESS • Do not write the magazine.

TPU Soldiers should notify their Unit Administrator or Unit Clerk. Members of the IRR and IMA should contact their Personnel Management Team at U. S. Army Human Resources Command, 1600 Spearhead Division Avenue. Fort Knox, KY 40122. AGRs should contact their PMO/PMNCO. Paid subscribers should forward their address change to the Superintendent of Documents, Attn: Mail List Branch SSOM, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. Special military distribution recipients may write the editor directly.

SuBSCRiPTiONS • Warrior Citizen is distributed free of charge to members of the U.S. Army Reserve.

Circulation is approximately 320,000. Paid subscriptions are available for $14.00 per year domestic, $19.60 foreign. Single copy price is $5.50 domestic, $7.70 foreign. Mail a personal check or money order payable to the Superintendent of Documents to: New Orders, Superintendent of Documents, P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954, or fax your order to 202-512-2233. Visa and MasterCard are accepted.

editor’s note “Every Soldier must be ready to fight and win in the complex battlespace of tomorrow. This requires better training, capable equipment, and the finest leadership in the history of the Army Reserve.”

— LT. GEN. CHARLES LUCKEY, CHIEF OF ARMY RESERVE AND COMMANDING GENERAL, U.S. ARMY RESERVE COMMAND

W

hat do a drill sergeant, an Olympian and a beauty queen have in common? Looks like a good place for a punch line, but in this case, the answer is that each of these Citizen Soldiers are serving in leadership roles, and maintaining high levels of fitness and discipline.

Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller, a drill sergeant with the 108th Training Command, IET, overcame a broken leg and twisted ankle to compete—and win—at the Army’s Best Warrior competition. Follow his journey on page 16.

2nd Lt. Sam Kendricks balanced the Transportation Officer Basic Leadership Course and Olympic training, and while he earned a bronze medal for the pole vault during the 2016 Summer Olympics, he gained instant internet fame—and kudos—for a moment captured on camera, see page 11.

1st Lt. Deshauna Barber, commander of the 988th Quartermaster detachment, took the stage as an ambassador for Soldiers and Veterans, and brought home the 2016 Miss USA title. See her story on page 10.

While individually they represent discipline, strength and grace, collectively they represent the best and brightest not only for America, but also its Army Reserve.

While our core competency and primary mission is to support the Army in winning the Nation’s wars, we are also uniquely well-suited to the task of responding to emergencies when needed in our neighborhoods and communities, like the Soldiers of the 811th Ordinance Company, who were recently recognized for answering the call and saving lives during evacuation procedures during one of the worst flood events in West Virginia’s history, see page 12.

Also bringing support to the homefront was a drill sergeant and Charlotte-Mecklenburg, North Carolina, police officer, who provides mentorship to school-aged children while performing duties as a school resource officer. See story on page 14.

The key to readiness and building a capable and combat ready force is training.

Soldiers assigned to 437th Civil Affairs Battalion hone their skills at Fort Irwin, California.

The environment at the National Training Center and the Mojave Desert was the perfect backdrop for the Soldiers to maintain proficiency and embrace the chaos. The feature, by Master Sgt. Mark Burrell, is featured on page 20.

Special thanks to Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, for his outstanding work in supporting Warrior Citizen, the 108th Training Command, and his many featured photos and stories in this issue, check out “The Leadership Lab” on page 31.

Finally, Lt. Gen Charles Luckey outlines his vision and focus for the Army Reserve, which will guide the force in the years to come, and the role every Soldier and Civilian plays in building the most capable, combat-ready, and lethal federal reserve force in the history of the Nation.

As always, the Soldiers and storytellers of the Army Reserve continue to inspire us. It is an incredible honor to tell your story… keep them coming!

1st Place winner of the 2011 Thomas Jefferson Award (category N) Recognized, MG Keith L. Ware Award: 2010 and 2011, 2015 (category C)

Melissa Russell Editor-in-Chief

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contents

photo by Spc. Michelle Stokes

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Volume 62 No. 1 2017

warrior is in the name

in this issue 1 Editor’s Note 4 From the Top

After healing from a broken right fibula, Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller fought back to overcome the physical and mental challenges of training for competition to become the second consecutive U.S. Army Reserve noncommissioned officer to be named 2016 Army Best Warrior NCO of the Year.

8 blogs + websites

by Timothy Hale, U.S. Army Reserve Command

11 soldier first‌then olympian

44 specialty soldiers wear the warrant

people 10 helmets and high heels

communities 12

14

811th Soldiers honored for life-saving rescue work drill sergeant mentor pays it forward

trained + ready 34 old guard, new opportunities 35 to catch a thief 36 on target 38 hands that work together, heal together 40 anakonda 16 42 soldier readiness starts at home

On the Cover Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller, 2016 U.S. Army Reserve Best Warrior Competition winner in the noncommissioned officer category.

Photos by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs NCOIC 2

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by Master Sgt. Mark Burrell, 352nd Civil Affairs Command

warrior citizen

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chaos in Guba

In the village of Guba, beneath a harsh midday sun, chaos erupts! Shop owners scatter and hijab-clad women steal glances at Army Reserve Soldiers—rifles raised—taking up protected positions throughout the village. Amid the confusion, one could easily forget that this desert village lies not in the Middle East… but southern California.

by Master Sgt. Mark Burrell, 352nd Civil Affairs Command

by Master Sgt. Mark Burrell, 352nd Civil Affairs Command

photo by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs NCOIC

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THE leadership lab

While summer for most college and university students generally means beaches and barbeques, students in the Army’s ROTC program spend their break training and learning the skills necessary for a career of service with the United States Army.

Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs NCOIC

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During the Army’s annual Drill Sergeant/ Platoon Sergeant of the Year competition event held at Fort Jackson, S.C., competitors were tested to their limits. Of the 15 NCOs vying to become the 2016 Drill Sergeant and AIT Platoon Sergeant of the Year, find out who emerged on top.

How Soldiers entering Basic Combat Training are introduced to the whole new world that is the Army.

head-to-head, for all the glory

By JONATHAN (JAY) KOESTEr, NCO Journal

‘shock and awe’ sets the tone

Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs NCOIC photo by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs NCOIC

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PHOTO BY MASTER SGT. MARK BELL, U.S. ARMY RESERVE COMMAND

from the top

PREPARING FUTURE LEADERS FOR AN EVOLVING BATTLEFIELD

Lt. Gen. Charles Luckey, the Army Reserve’s commanding general, is preparing the force to meet the emerging needs of the Army and the Nation, and growing leaders for a 21st Century force.

VISION: America’s Army Reserve ; the most capable, combat-ready, and lethal federal reserve force in the history of the Nation.

MISSION: The Army Reserve

provides trained, equipped and ready Soldiers, and cohesive units to meet the Nation's requirements, at home and abroad.

a new generation o Right: U.S. Army Sgt. Christine Vu and Spc. Jasmine Cardenas, flight medics from F Company, 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment, work with Kosovo Border Police to move a simulated patient to a helicopter during a medevac training exercise on the Administrative Boundary Line between Kosovo and Serbia, in Rogagic, Kosovo.

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WHO WE ARE: ready and relevant There is an evolving threat picture, and we must ensure that we as the Army—and specifically the Army Reserve—are ready and relevant in that environment.

We are America’s Army Reserve. We serve the people of the United States, with a mission to field combat-ready units across a wide array of capabilities. We support the Army’s PHOTO BY SGT. GINA RUSSELL, MULTINATIONAL BATTLE GROUP-EAST

Above: Lt. Gen. Charles D. Luckey, the 33rd Chief of Army Reserve and eighth commanding general of the U.S. Army Reserve Command, talks with Soldiers and civilians assigned to USARC headquarters at Marshall Hall located on Fort Bragg, N.C., on July 5, 2016.

Luckey was sworn in June 30, 2016, as the senior leader for nearly 200,000 Army Reserve Soldiers across all 50 states and U.S. territories.

WARRIOR CITIZEN

requirement to provide ready and lethal forces to combatant commands around the globe—whenever and wherever we are needed. We provide capability to the Army to reduce the force-structure requirements of a standing Army. We mitigate operational risk at significant cost-savings to the Nation, while generating strategic deterrence by retaining the president’s expeditionary options.

While in some respects we provide increased capacity to the force, we primarily deliver critical capabilities that are either high-demand/ low-density in the Regular Army or that can be generated efficiently by leveraging civilian-acquired or sustained skills.

Our highly educated Citizen Soldiers are a new generation of leaders—experienced professionals who leverage their technical and leadership skills while in uniform. Most importantly, we are Soldiers. As such, we need to be able to operate across the full spectrum of warfare.

We must be ready, we must be vigilant— and we must be lethal.

WHERE WE ARE GOING AND WHY: lethal = ready for a new kind of threat

Photo by Master Sgt. Michel Sauret, 200th Military Police Command

Today’s demand signal drives our requirement to have combat-ready units of action to meet and quickly outpace any threat to the Nation.

Where we are going is not where we’ve been; at least not any time lately. Most Soldiers today have never lived in a world where America’s status as the preeminent global power was subject to challenge or contention. For more than a generation, U.S. Armed Forces have had significant over-match capability in terms of global-precision strike, forced-entry options, space operations, maritime dominance and stealth technologies.

While we’ve been slugging it out with adversaries in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere, peer and near-peer

Left: Spc. Michael S. Orozco, 2016 U.S. Army Reserve Best Warrior Competition winner in the Soldier category, fires an M-240 machine gun at Fort Harrison, Mont.

Below: Staff Sgt. Alan Mendenhall, an observer-coach trainer with the 91st Training Division, demonstrates how to pull security during a counter-IED training lane at Fort Hunter-Liggett, Calif.

Photo by Calvin Reimold

n of leaders

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5

PREPARING FUTURE LEADERS FOR AN EVOLVING BATTLEFIELD

PHOTO BY MAJ. MICHAEL GARCIA

from the top

Right: Spc. Christonio Hatten, a bridge crew member with the 502nd Engineer Company (Multi-Role Bridge), from Fort Knox, Ky., prepares to hook a sling to attach a boat bay to a CH-47 Chinook helicopter during a sling load training operation with Army Reserve Soldiers at Fort Chaffee, Ark. 6

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adversaries have developed and fielded long-range precision strike platforms as well as superb anti-space, submarine and cyber weapon systems—advances that ensure their status as extraordinarily capable adversaries in a contested, hostile and lethal environment.

Emerging technologies in hypersonic and electromagnetic pulse (EMP) weapons, along with increasingly sophisticated cyber-actors and emerging hybrid threats, all trend towards an increasingly lethal and disruptive battlespace for the Future Force, but much of the “new normal” threat environment is already here. Just read the news.

The rear area is no longer secure, and our “over-match” on the battlefield is no longer a planning assumption that we can take for granted. Our full-spectrum readiness mandate requires all Citizen Soldiers to be individually ready, and to train, man and equip our units to defeat the threat. It is the bedrock of deterrence and winning. It also saves countless lives in combat.

HOW WE GET THERE: leadership, energy and execution There is no military command in the world with a similar challenge in terms of scope, complexity or opportunity.

Meeting the challenge of fielding—in any sort of relevant timeframe—a robust, capable, ready and lethal array of forces from the ranks of a “part-time” force is no small task.

Resources alone are a necessary, but insufficient, foundation for achieving high states of readiness across a broad mix of units.

This is about leading Soldiers and generating the most challenging and relevant training possible under what are

PHOTO BY MASTER SGT. MICHEL SAURET, 200TH MILITARY POLICE COMMAND

Above: Soldiers of the 318th Chemical Company out of Birmingham, Ala., decontaminate a Stryker vehicle during a decontamination mission at Red Dragon Fort McCoy, Wis., July 18, 2016. Red Dragon is the Army Reserve’s chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) training exercise held annually, designed for units to exercise their capabilities of countering the effects of CBRN threats and weapons of mass destruction.

PHOTO BY RENEE RHODES / FORT KNOX VISUAL INFORMATION

—LT. GEN. CHARLES LUCKEY, CHIEF OF ARMY RESERVE AND COMMANDING GENERAL, U.S. ARMY RESERVE COMMAND

often less-than-ideal conditions. We have all the tools we need to build, sustain and lead the most capable, combatready and lethal federal reserve force the Nation has ever seen. Inspired leadership and creative thought will be the decisive combat multipliers. Not confusing activity with effects will help to challenge assumptions and focus more tailored “investment.” Aligning future force structure and unit locations with trending American demographics will help us

PHOTO BY SGT. KIMBERLY BROWNE, 350TH PUBLIC AFFAIRS DETACHMENT

“There is no military command in the world with a similar challenge in terms of scope, complexity or opportunity.”

go after perennial recruiting and retention challenges that are unique to the Reserve Components. We must be where the people are.

We will assess and challenge, where appropriate, the current command and control architecture of America’s Army Reserve to best optimize a balance of technical (functional) expertise with the more general, but equally compelling, requirement for Soldiers at all echelons to have frequent and persistent contact with their leaders. This is how armies are built.

It is all about leadership, energy and execution. There will be no substitute for leaders who “get it.” It takes innovation, time, drive, commitment and energy. It takes heart. We find, encourage, empower and unleash the power within leaders one at a time. What we do matters very much—to the Army and to the people of the United States. Never forget it.

At top: An aviator from the Army Reserve Aviation Command (ARAC), guides a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter during a joint training exercise with the 19th Engineer Battalion on Fort Knox, Ky. Above: Soldiers with the 614th Engineer Detachment attack a helicopter fuselage fire during a multi-unit mass casualty exercise at Fort Hunter Liggett, Calif. The realistic exercise was part of the Fort’s 16th Annual Warrior Exercise and the scenario encompassed a simulated helicopter crash.

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blogs + websites The Web offers many free, interactive resources to help Warrior-Citizens and their Families make informed decisions regarding their health, finances, career and education. Here are some of the latest new and useful online tools for Soldiers.

www.teamrwb.org Team RWB’s mission is to enrich the lives of America’s veterans by connecting them to their community through physical and social activity. Team Red, White & Blue (Team RWB) is a nonprofit organization whose vision is to increase the connectivity between America’s combat veterans and people in their communities, using exercise as a medium to bring people together (running, triathlon, CrossFit, yoga, hiking, etc…) Team RWB also provides personal assistance/coaching for veterans who want to get back into shape.

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WWW.ARFP.ORG

WWW.USAR.ARMY.MIL/NEWS/SOCIALMEDIA

ARMY RESERVE FAMILY PROGRAMS provides education, training, awareness, outreach, information, referral and follow up. ARFP is a commander’s force multiplier for mission readiness. Family Programs staff serve as the primary coordinating resource, who provide a multitude of unit and community-based services that foster growth, development and readiness of Soldiers and Families assigned to the command.

SOCIAL MEDIA ALLOWS PEOPLE TO INTERACT WITH OTHERS WITH SIMILAR INTERESTS OR BACKGROUNDS in a relaxed and convenient online setting, underscoring the need to understand potential risks associated. A person’s online activities may inadvertently expose excessive information about their identity, location, relationships, and affiliations, creating an increased risk of identity theft, stalking, or targeted violence. Visit www.usar.army.mil/news/socialmedia for a safer social networking experience.

WWW.MYARMYONESOURCE.COM THE ARMY ONESOURCE VIRTUAL WORLD IS THE NEWEST INNOVATION FOR VIRTUAL WORLD SERVICES AND RESOURCES DESIGNED TO SERVE SOLDIERS AND FAMILIES WORLDWIDE. The virtual environment is an effective tool for geographically dispersed Soldiers to keep in touch with Family members and friends, and the programs within their Army Community. By using an avatar, a virtual representation of one’s self, users can meet virtually to collaborate, learn, socialize, and host or attend training sessions.

The Army OneSource Virtual World is an exciting, interactive place to visit and just have fun!

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people

FIRST WOMAN SERVING IN THE U.S. MILITARY TO WIN THE MISS USA CROWN

BY MASTER SGT. THOMAS A. O’HARA III, ARMY RESERVE COMMUNICATIONS

helmets and high heels

Then 1st Lt. Deshauna Barber, 988th QM DET Commander, poses during a photo shoot at the Miss Universe Headquarters in NYC, November 16, 2016. Barber won the Miss USA title in June 2016, becoming the first woman serving in the U.S. Military to win the crown.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — It may be the gown and sash that grab your attention, but Miss USA 2016 is using the glow of her crown to shine a light on the very serious issue of post-traumatic stress disorder. Capt. Deshauna Barber, who was crowned on June 5, is the first woman actively serving in the United States military to win the Miss USA title, and she is determined to use her time under the crown to represent not only her country, but those who have served and sacrificed.

“There are several organizations doing amazing things for Soldiers and I want our political figures to make that a top priority,” said Barber, currently assigned as commander for the 988th Quartermaster Detachment Unit at Rockville, Maryland.

“For example, twenty two veterans commit suicide each and every day. That’s a catastrophic number,” said Barber, who hopes her year as Miss USA will give her a voice, and a platform to help those with which she serves.

“In the military we are taught to be strong, we are taught to be tough, so we don’t want to say anything, and that’s the problem there,” Barber continued. “(Soldiers) think if they say something then it is weakness, but it’s not, it’s actually a strength.”

For Barber, calling attention to another important issue, gender equality in the services, started even before she was named the 2016 winner. In her final question, as part of the competition process, she addressed gender integration.

“… As a commander of my unit I am powerful, I am dedicated, and it is important that we recognize that gender does not limit us in the United States Army.”

PHOTOS BY MASTER SGT. VALERIE RESCINITI, 91ST TRAINING DIVISION (OPERATIONS)

— CAPT. DESHAUNA BARBER

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“As a woman in the United States Army, I think it was an amazing job by our government to allow women to integrate into every branch of the military. We are just as tough as men. As a commander of my unit I am powerful, I am dedicated, and it is important that we recognize that gender does not limit us in the United States Army,” she answered, which drew an incredible roar of support from those in attendance.

Barber, herself a second generation Soldier, experienced some of these issues first-hand growing up as her Family moved from assignment to assignment and by watching her father, now a retired master sergeant, deploy several times during her childhood. “It helped raise me to be tough, but it’s hard on Families,” said Barber.

Barber, a 26 year-old native of Columbus, Georgia, comes from a Family of Soldiers, in addition to her father, her mother and both her siblings also served in the Army. “It’s a Family tradition,” said Barber. She is however, the first in her Family to earn a commission as an officer, which she did in 2011, “and they (her Family) gave me a hard time about that,” Barber joked.

Barber also placed among the top nine finalists of 86 contestants in the Miss Universe Pageant on January 29. And what about after her time shouldering the sash is completed? “I want to do twenty years. That was always my dream to retire out of the Army,” said Barber.

AP PHOTO BY MATT SLOCUM

OLYMPIC POLE-VAULTER SAM KENDRICKS

Soldier first…then olympian WASHINGTON, D.C. — With intense focus on his upcoming jump, Olympic pole-vaulter Sam Kendricks charged toward the crossbar in the preliminary round at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro… but then came to a screeching halt.

There, on the mat, he stood at attention as the familiar notes of the U.S. national anthem began to waft through the arena.

With the countless hours of practice and years of dedication to the sport, Kendricks, a second lieutenant in the Army Reserve, in that moment demonstrated to the world something unique: He was a Soldier first.

Kendricks, who hails from Oxford, Miss., and graduated from the University of Mississippi, said he was intently focused on his run and didn’t realize his friend, Team USA shot-putter Michelle Carter, was about to be awarded her gold medal. “You try to blur out the chaos of the stadium and that’s what had happened,” Kendricks said after a Pentagon event honoring the 2016 military Olympic and Paralympic athletes.

“As the stadium grew quiet, I heard the Star-Spangled Banner playing, and I was already running,” he said.

BY LISA FERDINANDO, DOD NEWS, DEFENSE MEDIA ACTIVITY

“Immediately, my training kicks in. I stop. I try to find the nearest rising flag and didn’t realize I was on camera at all.”

But the moment was captured on camera and made an impact: U.S. and international press reported on it.

The video was uploaded on YouTube and shared on social media. “With that simple act, he made us proud, and when he later won the bronze medal, he made us all cheer as well,” Defense Secretary Ash Carter said at the Pentagon event.

And it was noticed up the chain of command… all the way up the chain.

“Sam Kendricks, a U.S. Army Reservist and pole vaulter, somehow stopped himself mid-sprint and stood at attention when he heard the national anthem playing on the other side of the stadium,” President Barack Obama said at a White House event honoring the 2016 USA Olympic and Paralympic Teams.

But Kendricks explained he is a Soldier first.

“I think it was a moment that any serviceman or woman would have done the same. I was just the guy on the track at that moment,” he said.

Above: Army Reserve Soldier and Olympic athlete, 2nd Lt. Sam Kendricks competes for chance at the gold medal during the 2016 Olympic trials at Eugene, Oregon.

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communities

IMMEDIATE RESPONSE

811th Soldiers honored for life-saving rescue work

BY RICK STEELHAMMER, CHARLESTON GAZETTE-MAIL

PHOTOS COURTESY 310TH EXPEDITIONARY SUSTAINMENT COMMAND

Photos: Members of the 811th Ordnance Company, 321st Ordnance Battalion, 38th Regional Support Group, perform rescue operations in coordination with local and state emergency first responders in the town of Rainelle, W.Va., following severe weather and flooding throughout the state on June 24, 2016.

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RAINELLE, W. Va. — Fourteen members of a Rainelle-based Army Reserve ordnance company were honored for saving lives, distributing food, clearing debris and providing shelter in Rainelle during and immediately after the historic flooding of June 2016.

While providing assistance to civilians during domestic emergencies is a key role for National Guard troops, it is not a traditional role for Army Reserve Soldiers. Nevertheless, volunteers from the 811th Ordnance Company quickly became part of a coordinated emergency response to the flood after receiving a request for aid from Rainelle Mayor Andy Pendleton on June 24, 2016.

The commander of the 811th, 1st Lt. Nicholas Todd Kranz, who lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, was unable to reach Rainelle until the following day, but immediately began coordinating a response to the flood via smartphone. Some of the 14 volunteers, who were able to reach the Rainelle Reserve Center shortly after Pendleton requested assistance, used the unit’s palletized load system truck and three light-medium tactical vehicles to launch nine rescue missions using rescue boats crewed by teams from area volunteer fire departments, the Division of Natural Resources, the National Park Service and a local tree service to evacuate more than 80 flood-stranded residents and take them to shelter. Among those rescued was a family with a newborn baby who had been trapped in their attic.

Other members of the ordnance company worked with the Rainelle Fire Department in responding to 911 distress calls and driving home-to-home to evacuate more than 100 people.

Working with State Police and elements of the West Virginia National Guard, the Army Reserve Soldiers used their vehicles to conduct sweeps of previously inaccessible areas to reach stranded Rainelle residents.

In addition to rescue work, volunteers from the ordnance company moved food, water and

cleaning supplies from a supply point to a National Guard staging area for distribution to flood survivors, offloaded pallets of drinking water from a 53-foot trailer, and provided a generator to circulate water, enabling residents to flush toilets and begin cleanup work in their homes.

“If it was not for the 811th team evacuating civilians, we would have recovered 40 bodies instead of four,” Rainelle Fire Chief Shawn Wolford said in an Army Reserve Command article on the unit’s rescue and recovery work.

Among the awards presented to the 811th included Army Certificates of Achievement, Army Achievement Medals and Army Commendation Medals.

“If it was not for the 811th team evacuating civilians we would have recovered 40 bodies instead of four.”

— SHAWN WOLFORD, RAINELLE FIRE CHIEF

Maj. Gen. Leslie J. Carroll, commander of the 377th Theater Sustainment Command, the Army Reserve’s largest operational command, of which the 811th is a part, officiated at the awards ceremony, which was held at The Resort at Glade Springs in Daniels, West Virginia.

Above: In a personal letter addressed to the commander of the 811th, the mayor of Rainelle asked for the immediate assistance of the U.S. Army Reserve force to help in the community they all share.

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communities

THE POSITIVE INFLUENCE OF MENTORS

Army Reserve drill sergeant and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department school resource officer, Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Blanchett (far right), 3rd Bn., 518th Inf. Reg. 98th Training Div. (IET), along with other Charlotte area law enforcement officers, plays chess against students at Cochrane Collegiate Academy located in Charlotte, N.C., March 2, 2016.

Blanchett hosts the chess club at the school every Wednesday after school.

He reinstated the club in 2016 as a way for teachers, parents and other law enforcement officers in the area to have positive interaction with students after school.

drill sergeant mentor pays it forward STORY AND PHOTOS BY SGT. 1ST CLASS BRIAN HAMILTON, 108TH TRAINING COMMAND (IET) PUBLIC AFFAIRS NCOIC

Army Reserve drill sergeant, Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Blanchett, 3rd Bn., 518th Inf. Reg. 98th Training Div. (IET), encourages visitors trying to do push-ups at Fan Fest during the CIAA College Basketball tournament held annually in Charlotte, N.C., Feb 26, 2016.

Blanchett has been a drill sergeant with the Army Reserve since 2004.

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. —

For more than half a century, the Army has looked to its corps of drill sergeants to provide mentorship. Whether on an obstacle course at Fort Jackson, S.C., or a battlefield in the Middle East, drill sergeants have provided the young Soldiers of America’s premiere fighting force with peerless expertise.

That specialty is something many Army Reserve drill sergeants also put into practice when away from the trail.

Take Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Blanchett, 3rd Bn., 518th Inf. Reg., 98th Training Division (IET). Blanchett has been a drill sergeant with the Army Reserve since 2004. He also serves as a school resource officer at

the Cochrane Collegiate Academy for the CharlotteMecklenburg police department.

“My job is to bridge the gap between the police department and the youth of today. There’s a lot of misconceptions about police officers and how we deal with the community,” Blanchett said. “But these young minds get to learn firsthand how to interact with me, and I’m able to give them a different perspective from what they hear on the streets.”

Blanchett, a law enforcement officer for 14 years, says he grew up tough in the slums of Philadelphia, Pa. He says mentorship is what got him through his childhood into the productive citizen he is today.

Passing on that mentorship is something he feels obligated to do.

“Mentorship is without a doubt my favorite aspect of both jobs, whether it’s Army or law enforcement,” he said. “I love being able to take something that I’ve learned and present it back to both students and Soldiers in a way that teaches. Hopefully, they can take something I’ve presented to them and either change their goals or elevate their goals.”

“Our students need people to look up to,” said Rachel Corn, Cochrane Collegiate Academy principal.

“Officer Blanchett has lived it from different angles and one of the things our students are not exposed to is the outside world. Our students are very sheltered

— SGT. 1ST CLASS MATTHEW BLANCHETT, 3RD BN., 518TH INF. REG., 98TH TRAINING DIVISION (IET)

and I think he offers a glimpse into what else is out there, other opportunities.”

But providing mentorship to students in an inner-city school can be challenging. So, starting at the beginning of the current school year, Blanchett brought back an old forgotten favorite among the students: the chess club.

Every Wednesday afternoon Blanchett, along with other faculty members as well as law enforcement officers from around Charlotte, meet at the Academy to take a quick lesson and then match their wits with the students in the centuries-old game.

“I wanted to have more positive interaction with the students off the clock,” Blanchett said. “It’s turned into one more tool we can use as law enforcement officers to interact with the students and we get to learn chess at the same time.”

That success hasn’t gone unnoticed.

“If you pull in to this school on a Wednesday and see all the police cars, you would think something happened,” Corn said. “But then you walk into the cafeteria and see all these law enforcement officers sitting there playing chess with the middle school students. It’s just amazing.

“The reality is he is so involved in every aspect of the school that he has become more than just protection,” she added. “We have a 100 percent partnership. I run everything by him, even things that don’t involve law enforcement. In that way, I think Officer Blanchett owns this school and he has become a mentor not only to the kids but to me as well.”

PHOTO BY BRIAN GODETTE, U.S. ARMY RESERVE COMMAND

“Mentorship is without a doubt my favorite aspect of both jobs, whether it’s Army or law enforcement. I love being able to take something that I’ve learned and present it back to both students and Soldiers in a way that teaches.”

the value of mentorship A MENTOR IS CONSIDERED AN EXPERIENCED AND TRUSTED ADVISOR, but a recent study shows that for the Army Reserve, they may also play a crucial role in Soldier retention.

KRC Research, at the bequest of the Army Reserve, conducted a survey of Soldiers within their one-year reenlistment window. The study was aimed at understanding key factors involved in their decision to reenlist or not.

Of the more than 200 Soldiers interviewed, leadership effectiveness and responsiveness were two of the top reasons for Soldiers deciding to exit the service. Moreover, those planning on continuing their military service were satisfied with both the effectiveness and responsiveness of their first-line leaders and their overall Army Reserve experience.

A key takeaway was the importance of mentorship.

Ultimately, mentorship is paramount to improving the Soldier experience. Soldiers who had never been approached by a mentor were less likely to remain in the Army Reserve. Mentorship is directly linked to higher satisfaction with military service, and those with a mentor perceive greater value and benefits in both their reserve and civilian life.

Mentors can be leaders or peers. The goal is to leverage the experience of someone you relate to, who will take the time to listen, provide guidance and keep you moving in the right direction. And once you’re on your way, never pass up an opportunity to pay it forward.

leadership effectiveness and responsiveness were two of the top reasons for Soldiers deciding to exit the service.

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“ Warrior is in the name ”

by Timothy Hale, U.S. Army Reserve Command

For the second year in a row, a U.S. Army Reserve noncommissioned officer was named the 2016 Army

Best Warrior NCO of the Year.

Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller, 95th Training Division (Initial Entry Training), maneuvers through an obstacle course at Fort Jackson, S.C., as part of the Best Warrior competition for the 108th Training Command (IET).

Photo by Maj. Michelle Lunato, 98th Training Division – Initial Entry Training

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Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller,

named the 2016 U.S. Army Reserve Best Warrior winner in May, competed at the Army-level competition at Fort A.P. Hill, Va., Sept. 26-30, besting nine other NCOs from across the Army.

The announcement was made Oct. 3 during the Association of the United States Army Annual Meeting and Exposition.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

PHOTO ILLUSTRATIONS

Moeller follows in the footsteps of Staff Sgt. Andrew Fink, the 2015 Army NCO winner. He also joins the company of Sgt. 1st Class Jason Manella, the 2013 Army NCO winner, and Spc. David Obray, the 2008 Army Soldier of the Year.

Moeller, a 36-year-old 16-year Army veteran who lives in Riverside, Calif., is a former cavalry scout and is now a senior drill sergeant with 2nd Battalion, 413th Infantry Regiment, 95th Training Division (Initial Entry Training), 108th Training Command (Initial Entry Training) in San Diego. He deployed once to Afghanistan and twice to Iraq.

After winning the Army Reserve competition in May at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Moeller said he knew the Army-level competition would be a challenge.

“I know I’m going up against the entire Army’s best,” Moeller said. “That means I really need to bring my game and step it up a few notches and really study hard for this next one.”

But his journey to the Army NCOY title wasn’t without some personal difficulty along the way.

“Five days after I won the Army Reserve competition, I broke my right fibula and twisted my ankle 90 degrees to the right playing in an adult-league soccer game,” Moeller said, laughing about it now. “I was pretty concerned that I had taken myself out of the running for the Army competition.”

But Moeller didn’t let his time in a cast take away from his preparation.

2016 U.S. Army NCO of the Year, Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller, tours a range on Fort Devens, Mass., during a quarterly Command Sergeants Major Advisory Board, October 26, 2016. Moeller was invited to attend the advisory board and provide input about the USARC and DA level Best Warrior competitions.

PHOTO BY MASTER SGT. MARISOL WALKER, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, ARMY RESERVE

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”

WHEN YOUR BODY STARTS TO GIVE OUT AND THOSE PSYCHOLOGICAL DEMONS START TALKING, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO SHAKE THEM OFF AND KEEP PUSHING.

Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller, a drill sergeant with the 108th Training Command (IET) and the 2016 U.S. Army Reserve Noncommissioned Officer of the Year, stands with the USAR Interim Command Sgt. Maj. James P. Wills at the awards banquet May 6, 2016.

PHOTO BY SGT. DARRYL MONTGOMERY, 319TH MOBILE PUBLIC AFFAIRS DETACHMENT

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“During my recovery my mind was still in the game. I had my face in the books and manuals, and I was reading regulations online. Even if I knew something I went back over it because some of that information is perishable,” he said.

Once out of the cast, Moeller and fellow USARC Best Warrior Soldier of the Year, Spc. Michael S. Orozco, along with NCO and Soldier of the Year runners-up Sgt. 1st Class Robert D. Jones and Spc. Carlo Deldonno, travelled to Fort Harrison, Montana, for three weeks of training to prepare for the Army competition.

“The training the U.S. Army Reserve Command put on was more than I could have hoped for as far as the pace and depth and breadth,” Moeller said.

“Not only the tactical training but the leadership training we went through.

All of it was important to becoming an overall, well-rounded leader and NCO. “I also attended the Senior Leader Course that was a month-long training of talking everything and

”

anything military with infantrymen, tankers, mortar crews. It was coincidental but extremely helpful,” he said.

The month before the competition, Moeller spent at least one day a week on a range back home in California using his own personal weapons to maintain his proficiency.

Collectively, all of this training helped him prepare for the physical and mental aspects of the Army competition.

“There were so many out-of-the box training events at the Army Best Warrior competition,” he said. “All of the events were designed to get the Warriors to think their way through each event. It was a physical competition but so much more of it was mental.”

He said his toughest event was the 12-mile ruck march.

“I consider myself to be a very strong ruck march Soldier but the toughest hill was at the end of mile three,” he said. “We were gassed but we knew we had nine more miles to go. Usually I can tell within the first few minutes or miles who is strong, who is going to be dropped. But on this one, you had 20 of the Army’s best Soldiers so everyone was strong. I can usually start pulling away but I looked around and there were still Soldiers around me. I managed to catch a group ahead of me but they started to pull away. That’s when those doubts start creeping in, and you have to tell yourself to just keep pushing.”

He said after the announcement he was able to immediately share the good news with his girlfriend Lisa Cho, a California attorney.

“I hugged her immediately,” he said. “I was glad she was there to share the moment.”

He said his entire family is proud of him and planned a belated birthday and NCOY winner celebration at his mother’s house in San Diego.

In the week following the announcement, Moeller and Army Soldier of the Year winner Spc. Robert Miller, representing U.S. Army Pacific Command, were treated like royalty the rest of the week at the AUSA meeting and exposition.

Above: 2016 U.S. Army NCO of the Year, Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller, 95th Training Division (Initial Entry Training), navigates through an obstacle course at For Jackson, S.C. Photo SGT. 1ST CLASS BRIAN HAMILTON, 108TH TRAINING COMMAND (IET) PUBLIC AFFAIRS NCOIC

Below: Moeller, assigned to U.S. Army Reserve Command, demonstrates his marksmanship and tactical combat casualty care capabilities during a live-fire exercise on Day Three of the U.S. Army 2016 Best Warrior Competition at Fort A.P. Hill, Va., Sept. 28, 2016.

“As soon it was announced the fun really started. It was a constant barrage of congratulations,” Moeller said. “We never stopped moving. Media interviews, attending some of the meetings and canvassing the exposition floor meeting people at all of the displays. I’m a techie

kind of guy, and I loved getting my hands on all of the new technology.”

Moeller said he would be put on orders to work in the office of the Sergeant Major of the Army for the next year. He will also be making some personal appearances on behalf of the Army and the Army Reserve at events like the Army All-American Bowl and maybe even the Army-Navy game.

If he had one piece of advice for fellow Army Reserve Soldiers who want to compete at this level it would be to ask, “What does being a Best Warrior mean to you personally?

“Warrior is in the name. The first thing you have to do is shoot, move, communicate, survive, and adapt and do it again and again. You have to study and keep studying over and over. And take some time to do some self-reflection. When your body starts to give out and those psychological demons start talking, you have to be able to shake them off and keep pushing.”

He said ultimately, competing at this level is a personal commitment to increase individual readiness.

“Competing in BWC is training, no matter how you slice it,” he said. “It’s the highest level of training over a long period of time. They need to sharpen and hone their abilities as individuals [and] this directly correlates back to the unit. The individual and the whole team reap the benefits. It’s real-life training that helps every Soldier achieve their fullest potential.”

Photo by Spc. Michelle Stokes

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The village of Guba is bustling.

Local shop owners yell in foreign dialects hawking their wares from stalls that display colorful rugs and clothing.

Hijab-clad women steal glances at Army Reserve Soldiers meeting with the local police chief and village elder.

Older villagers casually lounge while smoking in

chairs, trying to avoid the harsh midday sun.

And then‌ chaos!

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. f i l a C , n i w r I t For

Overleaf: Sgt. 1st Class James Mays, a civil affairs Soldier from Red Boiling Springs, Tenn., pulls security while troops from the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion hone their civil affairs capabilities at National Training Center Fort Irwin, Calif., Sept. 7, 2016.

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A mushroom cloud of dust appears in the distance beyond the village followed by a booming eruption piercing the casual chaos of the marketplace.

The explosion scatters the locals. The streets quickly become deserted as the Army Reserve troops from the Fort Story, Virginia-based 437th Civil Affairs Battalion raise their rifles and take up protected positions throughout the village.

Luckily, the village of Guba isn’t real. It’s a fake town constructed of plywood, concrete and large metal cargo containers in the middle of the Mojave Desert at the National Training Center (NTC) in Fort Irwin, Calif.

“There’s a lot of confusion, there’s a lot of chaos,” said Sgt. 1st Class Derek Ungerecht, a civil affairs team sergeant from Chesapeake, Va. “Role players play a big part in it… they really do fill the places out.

After two deployments to Iraq as a military policeman, Ungerecht knows what a remote village looks like and what chaos feels like. He said this was some of the most realistic training he’s had in his 14 years in the Army.

“The buildings and infrastructure replicate the cities that would be found on the outskirts of large built-up areas,” said Maj. Larry Graham, senior civil military operations officer from Bellflower, Calif., and part of the training team assigned to the NTC Operations Group.

“As the civil environment kind of develops, you have a number of civilians who will react to the kinetic and non-kinetic actions on the battlespace.”

These types of civil military operations on the battlefield are exactly the situations that the troops from the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion train for in preparation for their upcoming deployment to the Middle East.

“The level of detail we try to replicate is a realistic environment that is adaptive...

The enemy has an equal say in the fight,” said Graham.

With three deployments under Graham’s belt, he knows that the battlefield is constantly evolving and combat is unpredictable. The specific civil affairs scenarios are geared to replicate real-world situations, even down to the living conditions.

“What we find is that training absolutely prepares them in terms of their craft, but the next logical step is to stress those things that they’ve been taught,” added Graham. “To put them in positions that are awkward, difficult, challenging, tired, stressed, hungry, in the heat.”

The Mojave Desert provides a stunning backdrop to stress these conditions.

Left: Spc. Madelyn Riccio, a civil affairs Soldier from Virginia Beach, Va., assigned to the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion, puts a tourniquet on a role player simulating an injury.

Left and right: Troops from the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion hone their civil affairs capabilities at National Training Center Fort Irwin, Calif. The 437th Civil Affairs Bn. keeps troops trained and proficient in order to support the 352nd Civil Affairs Command’s mission to support the Central Command area of operations.

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Above: Sgt. 1st Class Patrick Shipp, a civil affairs Soldier from Virginia Beach, Va., assigned to the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion, shaves using a humvee mirror at dawn.

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The heat and exhaustion from running 24/7 operations, dealing with an enemy that is constantly on the move and an insurgency to quell provides plenty of opportunities for realistic training for the Army Reserve troops.

“Most of this rotation we were out with an infantry line company; it’s mostly living out of a Humvee for two weeks,” explained Sgt. Jacob King, a civil affairs noncommissioned officer from Farmville, Virginia, assigned to 437th Civil Affairs Battalion.

“Basically, I’ve been wearing the same uniform for six days now… living on as little as possible.”

The civil affairs troops were attached to 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, and sometimes had to get back to basic Soldier skills by providing security or clearing buildings.

“We are civil affairs, but we still are part of the fighting force and our primary job, as any Army person, is to be a fighter first and then our other job comes second,” described King. “It’s not our goal to come out and get into a gun battle; it’s still something we have to do.

When we come into a place like this, it’s still a hostile environment and we don’t just run away when we get shot at — we shoot back.”

There’s no lack of shooting and explosions during the training, day or night.

“I’ll be deploying at the beginning of next year; NTC is a great opportunity to work on the basic soldiering

“We are civil affairs, but we still are part of the fighting force and our primary job, as any Army person, is to be a fighter first...”

— Sgt. Jacob King, civil affairs noncommissioned officer

skills to be ready to go into a forward environment where things might be hostile,” said King. The Army has given me a lot of leadership skills and really helped me advance my career. And vice versa, I’m not just another guy who’s gone through basic training and knows how to shoot a gun; I have a skillset I can apply to what we do to help accomplish the mission.”

Throughout it all, the troops rarely complained. At least not about the training.

However, for some of the Soldiers from the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion, their homecoming from NTC will be short-lived. Soon, they’ll be saying goodbye to their loved ones again for a much longer deployment. This time in real danger, but also a little more prepared to handle it.

Troops from the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion and 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, plan an upcoming mission.

Above: Troops from the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion go through their morning routine at National Training Center Fort Irwin, Calif.

Below: Spc. Tatyanna Holley, a civil affairs specialist from Merry Hill, N.C., assigned to the 437th Civil Affairs Battalion rises to the challenges of a new day at the National Training Center Fort Irwin, Calif.

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head-to-head, for a . d.c n, to ing sh wa

After four days of difficult competition, the 15 NCOs vying to become the 2016 Drill Sergeant and AIT Platoon Sergeant of the Year were called into the Bowen Room of the Drill Sergeant Academy at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, for the announcement of the winners. The toll the competition had taken was obvious, as many limped in to take their spots, walking delicately to avoid blisters and burns on their sore feet. They were pained and tired, but still standing proud.

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Then the announcement came. Sgt. 1st Class Martin Delaney, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, was named the 2016 Drill Sergeant of the Year. Sgt. Ryan Moldovan, 98th Training Division, was named 2016 Army Reserve Drill Sergeant of the Year. Staff Sgt. Brandon Laspe, Panama City, Florida, was named Advanced Individual Training Platoon Sergeant of the Year.

Before the winners were announced, the NCOs heard from Maj. Gen. Anthony Funkhouser, commanding general of the Center for Initial Military Training, who told them he was impressed by what he saw during the week. He also told a story about a family he met.

“There are a lot of families at my hotel because of the graduation,” Funkhouser said. “One family had a little boy, he was probably 10 years old. He sees me in uniform and he comes to start talking to me, making small talk, chatting away. He says, ‘Hey, my older brother is graduating tomorrow from basic training. He wants to be a drill sergeant one day.’ I say, ‘That’s pretty neat. Our drill sergeants are impressive individuals.’

So, he says, ‘Are you a drill sergeant?’ I look down at my rank, stand up straight so he can see it, and say, ‘No, I’m a general.’ He said, ‘Oh…so will you ever get promoted to drill sergeant?’”

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Clockwise from top left: Army Reserve Drill Sergeant of the Year competitor, Sgt. 1st Class Jason Scott, 95th Training Division (IET), talks through firing the AT-4 at the 2016 TRADOC Drill Sergeant of the Year competition, Sept. 7, 2016.

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Sgt. Ryan Moldovan, an Army Reserve drill sergeant with the 98th Training Division, 108th Training Command (IET) crosses the finish line of the 12-mile road march.

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Army Reserve Drill Sergeant of the Year competitor, Sgt. Ryan Moldovan, 98th Training Division (IET), identifies numerous types of hand grenades and their uses. Moldovan, and Sgt. 1st Class Jason Scott, 95th Training Division (IET) faced off in a head to head competition at Fort Jackson, S.C., to see who would be named the 2016 Army Reserve Drill Sergeant of the Year.

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Sgt. Ryan Moldovan, an Army Reserve drill sergeant with the 98th Training Division, 108th Training Command (IET) negotiates an obstacle during the Fit to Win endurance obstacle course during the Army’s annual Drill Sergeant/ Platoon Sergeant of the Year competition event held at Fort Jackson, S.C. from Sept. 6-9, 2016. The event tested the competitors in a variety of Soldier tasks and drills such as the Army Physical Fitness Test, weapons knowledge and marksmanship, as well as a timed 12-mile road march carrying a basic combat load and weapon.

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To be named Army Reserve Drill Sergeant of the Year, Moldovan had to survive a difficult challenge from Army Reserve Sgt. 1st Class Jason Scott, 95th Training Division. As the competition wore on, their respect for each other grew through the tests.

“These NCOs are top notch,” Moldovan said. “I had to keep up with them 100 percent of the way.

“I could talk to you all day about Drill Sgt. Scott,” Moldovan continued. “His ethics, his principles, his integrity. I’ll tell you a story about Drill Sgt. Scott. We were head-to-head, right? It’s me against him for all the glory. We had a surprise ruck march. They brought us into a line, we had our ruck sacks on, and they said, ‘Alright drill sergeants: ruck march. Unknown distance, unknown time.’ I started tightening my straps. I went to tighten a strap, and it unsnapped. There was nothing I could do to get it to snap, and everybody was already halfway down the road. Drill Sgt. Scott — knowing that I’m his direct competition — stopped to help me. He said, ‘I got you, Battle,’ and he snapped me up and then we ran together on the ruck march. I have so much respect for Drill Sgt. Scott. He is a great competitor.”

There could only be the three winners, but as Funkhouser said earlier in the week, the 15 competitors were already “the best of the best.” The 15 walked and limped away from the week with memories they won’t soon forget.

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Above: Army Reserve Drill Sergeant of the Year competitor, Sgt. Ryan Moldovan, 98th Training Division (IET) dons his protective mask.

Right: Army Reserve Drill Sergeant of the Year competitor, Sgt. 1st Class Jason Scott, 95th Training Division (IET), hurdles the low wall on the fit to win obstacle course during the 2016 TRADOC Drill Sergeant of the Year competition, Sept. 8, 2016.

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Story AND PHOTO

by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th training command (IET) Public Affairs NCOIC

S

RS

‘shock and awe’ sets the tone FORT JACKSON, S.C. — ‘Rapid dominance’ was a concept adapted as doctrine first authored by Harlan K. Ullman and James P. Wade of the United States’ National Defense University in 1996.

Simply put, it’s a means of affecting the resolve of your adversary by imposing your will in a rapid system of ‘shock and awe.’

Having proven effective in 2003’s combat operations in Iraq, it is widely used today as a means of setting the tone for Soldiers early on in the cycle and throughout the U.S. Army’s Basic Combat Training posts.

For drill sergeants of the Army and Army Reserve, picking up Soldiers on the first day of basic combat training with Company F, 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment, the process is simple – let the Soldiers know early and often that they are here to train.

“This is basically citizens who are coming from the streets getting introduced to the Army from day one. It lets them know that ‘hey, there are certain standards of discipline that we expect from you, and you will meet those expectations,’” said Army drill sergeant, Staff Sgt. Giovanni Rubio.

“Up to this point they’ve had only a small taste of what the Army is all about in the reception battalion. Here today we are introducing them to that whole new world that is the Army. Shock and awe is probably the best way to describe this experience.” But more importantly, it’s works.

“The way we pick Soldiers up on that first day sets the standard for how the cycle will be conducted. It gets the Soldiers’ attention,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Christopher Barnard, 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment command sergeant major.

“When you have drill sergeants getting them immediately off the bus and into formation with high motivation, it provides that ‘shock and awe’ that we’re looking for,” he said. “It basically sets the foundation for the rest of the cycle. It instills in them that they will listen… or there will be repercussions.”

For drill sergeants from the Army Reserve’s 108th Training Command (IET) performing their annual training mission on Fort Jackson, the excitement of that first day of training gives them a reason to keep coming back.

Army Reserve Drill Sergeant Staff Sgt. Kevin Knight, 95th Training Division (IET), said, “Being a drill sergeant is addictive.

Having done this many times before, this first day is always an adrenaline rush. It lets these young Soldiers know that they are in my world now.”

Knight, who served as a drill sergeant on active duty from 1987 until 1989, has been an Army Reserve drill sergeant since 2006.

Normally, he spends his summers as a drill sergeant in basic combat training units at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. At the request of his sister unit at the 98th Training Division (IET),

he made the trek cross country to help out at Fort Jackson.

He says that while he loves what he does with the Army Reserve, it doesn’t come without certain unavoidable drawbacks.

“For me the hardest part about being a reserve drill sergeant, as opposed to one on active duty, is that you are starting the fight and you're starting to develop your Soldier and then about a third of the way through the process, you do a battle hand-off with someone else to finish the job,” Knight said.

“You only influence bits and pieces of the product, and you never get to see the end result of your hard work. For me, that part of it is a bit of a letdown.”

For all involved in the process of transforming ordinary citizens into warriors, the benefit of seeing a disciplined Soldier walk across the stage at the end of a basic training cycle is a rewarding one. But they all agree that it is a process and that process begins with ‘shock and awe.

“Seeing them transition from civilian to Soldier is a great feeling,” Rubio said.

“You can tell that by that point, discipline is instilled in them and they know why they’re here. That discipline starts here today.”

Above; New Soldiers arriving for their first day of Basic Combat Training with Company F, 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment on Fort Jackson, S.C. are “welcomed” by drill sergeants from both the U.S. Army and U.S. Army Reserve.

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Cadets in Cadet Basic Camp at Fort Knox, Ky., attempt to evacuate a simulated casualty across an obstacle at the Leadership Reaction Course, July 23, 2016.

A cadet in Cadet Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, Ky., shouts instructions to his battle buddy at the Individual Movement Techniques range.

Above: Cadets in Cadet Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, Ky., learn disassembly and assembly of their M4 carbine.

Far right: A cadet in Cadet Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, Ky., lays down cover fire for his team mate at the Hand Grenade Assault range.

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The

leadership

lab

Story and photos by

Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton 108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs NCOIC

then President Woodrow Wilson, signed into law the National Defense Act of 1916.

With the swift stroke of a pen, the Army’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps was born.

Today, Army ROTC programs, under the control of Cadet Command, have found their way into 275 colleges and universities throughout the United States and its territories; producing more than half a million new Army officers since the program’s inception.

While summers for most at these institutions of higher learning are generally dedicated to beaches in exotic locations and outdoor barbeques with friends, students in the Army’s ROTC program spend their break training for a career of service with the United States Army.

Leadership laboratory Each year, an average of 7,000 cadets in the Army’s ROTC program participate in what is known as the Cadet Summer Training mission at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

Broken down into two phases, cadets go through either a 30-day basic Cadet Initial Entry Training, known as basic camp, or 31-day Cadet Leadership Training, known as advanced camp. Both are designed to lay the foundation of leadership skills in what one Army Reserve leader calls an “effective and efficient leadership laboratory.”

“This leadership lab creates the conditions for these cadets to excel and allows for us to asses future leaders and capitalize on their strengths, while identifying and improving on their weaknesses,” said Maj. Gen. Mark McQueen, 108th Training Command (Initial Entry Training) commanding general.

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The 108th is made up of instructors and support cadre from the 104th Training Division (LT) and drill sergeants from its 95th and 98th Training Divisions. Together, throughout the summer at Fort Knox, they function as single entity known as Task Force Wolf. Laying the groundwork for success, they ensure all who attend have the tools they need to achieve their goals.

Through Task Force Wolf, these Soldiers work hand in hand with Soldiers from the active component and National Guard to plan, establish, and facilitate ranges and provide logistical support.

A cadet in Cadet Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, Ky., lays down suppressive fire for his team mate at the Hand Grenade Assault course.

Preparing future leaders for an evolving battlefield As the modern battlefield evolves, so does training at the Cadet Summer Training mission.

Old or obsolete practices are continuously updated and training support packages are developed to address an ever-changing battlefield.

“We are now using the Occupational Physical Assessment Test at the CST to better determine the physical capabilities of the Cadets,” said Chief Warrant Officer 5 Russell P. Smith, U.S. Army Reserve command chief warrant officer.

“This allows us to determine what options cadets have in terms of their future branch.”

“We’re also looking at our Medical Readiness standards.

It’s coming down to whether a Soldier is deployable or non-deployable. The Chief of Staff of the Army [Gen. Mark Milley] needs deployable Soldiers and it’s up to us to provide those Soldiers.”

In addition, Smith says that future leaders in the ROTC program will find themselves preparing for the foreign, near-peer Army threat as opposed to solely the counterinsurgency one.

“We’re going back to some of the basics here that we would have previously taught in the ‘70’s, ‘80’s and early 90’s but have gotten away from: light discipline, noise discipline, camouflage.”

He says that revisiting past practices will help enable the shift in mindset needed as the Army looks once again at the possibility of fighting conventional forces in a different theater.

“These are the future leaders of the Army Reserve and total Army. What they learn here is going to set the tone for their future success,” he added.

The “Soldierization” process The Army has spent 52 years now perfecting an initial entry training model that turns ordinary citizens into tested and trusted warriors. For enlisted Soldiers, this process takes place during 10 short weeks of Basic Combat Training.

It’s a process that Command Sgt. Major Lamont Christian, Fort Jackson post command sergeant major and former U.S. Army Drill Sergeant Academy commandant, calls the “Soldierization” process.

Constraints on training time and space create extra challenges for cadets in ROTC. Educational requirements at their home schools add an additional complexity.

“At the Military Academy there is a structured program of instruction that develops them throughout the entire four years. ROTC Cadets go through A cadet in Cadet Basic Camp at Fort Knox, Ky., has his weapon inspected by an Army Reserve drill sergeant from the 95th Training Division (IET) before turning it in to the arms room

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108th

The Training Command

their military science instruction in a class room environment,” Christian said.

In order to achieve the same goals in less time, Cadets in ROTC are given the added benefit of the Army’s premier training force— the drill sergeant. Until recent years, those same drill sergeants have been absent from the summer mission.

“The Soldierization process for them (ROTC Cadets), as opposed to their counterparts at the Military Academy, is spread out over the four years. These training-based models over the summer are the only times they get to be infused in that process.

So by bringing drill sergeants here, that basic training process is replicated for them.”

Build, maintain, sustain The overarching goal at the ROTC Cadet Summer Training mission is to prepare the Army’s future leaders in order to sustain the future force. But McQueen sees it as something more.

“Some of these Cadets may be your future Chief of Staff of the Army,” he said.

“But we’re not only building the future force out here, we’re maintaining the one we currently have by providing a platform for our instructors and drill sergeants to sharpen their skills on a larger Army stage.”

In all, McQueen says the Cadet Summer Training mission is a complex, multi-faceted machine with numerous layers and moving pieces. But he also says it’s one he’s more than happy to support.

“This has been a tremendous opportunity for the Army Reserve to lean forward and have a direct hand in producing the more than 72 percent of the Army’s gold bars,” said McQueen. “It takes a Total Army force to make this happen and I’m very proud of the job my Soldiers are doing.”

The 108th Training Command (IET), headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, supports two of TRADOC’s five core function leads: the Center for Initial Military Training and Cadet Command.

“The 108th Training Command (IET) is vital to building the nation's might,” said Maj. Gen. Mark T. McQueen, 108th Training Command (IET) commanding general. “Professional Soldiers trained as drill sergeants, drill sergeant leaders, and ROTC instructors supported by key enablers are shaping the Army’s total force and indeed its future leaders.”

Fewer than 5,000 federal Soldiers comprise the Army’s elite drill sergeant corps. More than half of those reside solely within the 108th’s three training Divisions: the 95th at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, the 98th located at Fort Benning, Georgia, and the 104th headquartered at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. The 108th is the only command of its kind in the Army Reserve.

Activated originally as the 108th Airborne Division, the unit has undergone many transformations throughout its 70-year history.

With more than 8,000 Soldiers located in 44 states and Puerto Rico, its current focus is transforming citizens into Soldiers by providing Initial Entry Training at the Army’s four Basic Combat Training Installations, as well as leader development at the United States Drill Sergeant Academy at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, and the ROTC basic and advanced camps at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

As the Army’s tactical environment broadens, so too has the 108th’s.

Professional trainers and Maj. Gen. Mark McQueen, 108th Training instructors within the Command (IET) commanding general, speaks to command have expanded a cadet in Cadet Basic Camp at Fort Knox, Ky., during the Key Leader Engagement exercise their global footprint to July 22. The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps’ support Theater Security Cadet Summer Training Mission is supported by Cooperation training the 108th Training Command (IET) through its Task Force Wolf throughout the summer. efforts in some of the most remote regions on the planet. Focusing on providing tactical and technical warrior skills to train security forces within the CENTCOM area of operations, the 108th plays a crucial role in protecting infrastructure in areas where such security is vital to maintaining stability.

According to Command Sgt. Maj. Robert J. Riti, 108th Training Command command sergeant major, the 108th Training Command (IET) has always has stood at the front door of the Army, with its participation at the Army Training Centers as well as Cadet Initial Entry training paying great dividends in building the Army and tomorrow’s leaders. “At the end of the day it all comes down to a common goal; training Soldiers to be the most lethal fighting force on the face of the earth.”

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MP SOLDIERS TAKE ON REAL-WORLD LAW AND ORDER

old guard, new opportunities STORY AND PHOTOS BY MASTER SGT. MICHEL SAURET, 200TH MILITARY POLICE COMMAND

Staff Sgt. Michael Deitz, patrol supervisor for the 289th Military Police Company, belonging to the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), inspects his vehicle before the start of his patrol in the Military District of Washington.

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FORT MEADE, Md. — The Old Guard isn’t teaching new tricks, but they are providing new opportunities to the Army Reserve, especially to the military police community.

Since early 2016, Reserve MP Soldiers have taken on real-world law and order missions in the national capital region.

“This partnership is a win-win for both the active component and the Army Reserve. It allows us to accomplish the law enforcement certification, which affects our readiness directly ... [and] it allows the active component an opportunity to provide their Soldiers time for individual training they do not have time for due to their high operational tempo mission cycle,” said Maj. Gen. Phillip Churn, former commanding general of the 200th Military Police Command, which provided the Soldiers for this mission.

This is the first time this partnership has taken place in the form of a pilot program, especially in Washington, D.C., since 2001. Reserve Soldiers have performed security work at other installations in the past, but mostly at National Guard or Army Reserve bases.

“At first, you get the jitters because [I’ve] never done it before, but then you start

settling in, start getting the hang of how things work, and now when I get to work, I know what to do,” said Spc. Anthony Petry while on a patrol at Fort McNair, Wash.

Petry is a member of the 374th MP Company, out of Chambersburg, Pa. He is one of more than 20 Army Reserve Soldiers from six MP units supporting this mission. The partnership agreement took place in January, and in less than a month, troops were ready to report for duty.

“I want them to come away from this knowing they were treated like professionals,” said Capt. Jason Albrecht, 289th MP Company commander. “Our goal is for them to leave here and know they were part of our family and honorary members.”

The 289th MP Company is an active-duty unit, belonging to the famed 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, also called The Old Guard, known for its security and ceremonial details for the U.S. president, honorary events and dignitaries visiting the D.C. area.

The Old Guard is the oldest active infantry regiment in the U.S., founded in 1784 by Gen. George Washington to serve as his personal protection guard. Every Soldier who serves in The Old Guard is hand-selected and must pass several screening criteria, including aptitude tests and a review of their personnel records.

Their duty locations include Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall’s historical installations of Fort Myer, Henderson Hall, Fort McNair and the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

This program began as a conversation between Churn and the commanding general of the Military

ARMY RESERVE MPS FOIL ROBBERY

Far left: Pvt. Kaloni Alston (right) from Temple Hills, Md., with the 443rd MP Company, 200th MP Command, helps raise the American flag during a morning detail along with two active duty Soldiers from the 289th MP Company, belonging to the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), during a working partnership in the Military District of Washington, Feb. 17, 2016.

Left: Sgt. Michael Villena (right), from Manassas Park, Va., with the 352nd MP Company, 200th MP Command, checks a driver's paperwork at one of the entry gates to Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, as part of a partnership training program with the 289th MP Co., 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), to provide law and order, security and patrol support.

District of Washington, Maj. Gen. Bradley Becker. They signed the program into agreement in January, and the two commands worked quickly to turn the idea into reality. MDW is a joint force headquarters covering multiple installations in the national capital region.

“The high caliber of Soldier serving this mission, active and Reserve, is impressive. [The MDW leadership said] they couldn’t tell the difference between an Army Reserve Soldier and an active-duty Soldier. So, from that perspective, mission accomplished. Job well done,” said Churn, a native of Washington.

For Army Reserve Soldiers, this partnership provides valuable training not readily available. It incorporates a two-week law enforcement certification course, a requirement for Reserve MPs every three years. Also, instead of attending regular battle assemblies, these Soldiers will report for duty at Fort Myer for the year.

For active duty MPs, the program provides some relief and flexibility.

In 2015, the Total Army Analysis took effect, reducing the 289th MP Company by roughly 20 percent in manpower. This left them with enough Soldiers to fulfill their security mission but made it more difficult for those Soldiers to conduct other Army-mandated and squad-level training.

“We’ll be able to take a squad off the road at a time ... to do training,” said Staff Sgt. Micheal Deitz, patrol supervisor for the 289th Military Police Company. “Right now, you only see your Soldiers if they’re working with you, and it’s kind of hard to get to know them and train them… when you’ve only seen them a couple of hours a day, if that.”

Soldiers on both sides commented on the seamless integration of Army Reserve troops into the active-duty mission.

“I thought there were going to be a lot of hiccups,” said Petry. “But once we started working the roads, everything just clicked into place. The 289th knows what they’re doing.”

to catch a thief

STORY AND PHOTO BY SGT. 1ST CLASS JACOB BOYER, 200TH MILITARY POLICE COMMAND

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. — Six Soldiers of the 372nd Military Police Company, based in Cumberland, Md., were nearing the end of their two-week annual training at Joint Base McGuire-Dix, Lakehurst, N.J., when they stopped at the local pharmacy in nearby Pemberton Township and wound up foiling a robbery.

Sgt. Eric Blake, an MP who serves as a law enforcement officer with Maryland’s Anne Arundel County Police Department in his civilian career, was there to purchase ibuprofen.

Cpl. Aaron Dabney, a law enforcement officer with the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia, joined him.

The two men went into the store wearing their Army uniforms and when they left, they came across something unusual: a young man wearing a bandana over his face with a plastic bag in one hand and a 10-inch knife in the other. Both men’s instincts kicked in.

The moves Blake and Dabney made were the beginning of a mental checklist police officers use in situations like this, he said. Although neither man was armed, they weren’t without tools, and Blake was determined to use them to stop something bad from happening.

Blake told Dabney, an internment and resettlement specialist in the Army Reserve, to tell the four Soldiers in their van what was going on, and he immediately dialed 911. The dispatcher put him in touch with the Pemberton Township Police Department as the other Soldiers left the van to help.

Brown left the van with two other MPs, Sgt. Jonah Rock and Sgt. Kori Leopoldo. The three men followed as backup for Blake and Dabney while Sgt. Sean McCarthy, a signal support systems specialist who was acting as the driver, followed in the van.

By that point, the young man had left the pharmacy and was fleeing. Dabney followed closely, yelling details to Blake, who relayed them to Pemberton police officers. They followed him down an alley, where the Army Reserve Soldiers assigned to suspect first shed his jacket, and then dropped the knife the Cumberland, Md., based 372nd Military Police Company apprehended and the bag, which was full of money taken from the a robbery suspect after leaving a local store. Although he knew the knife had been dropped, pharmacy in Pemberton Township, Dabney remained cautious, because “if somebody has N.J., during their annual training at JBMDL. one weapon on them, they probably have another.”

As Rock, a native of Hagerstown, Md., and Leopoldo, who lives in California, secured the evidence, Dabney and Blake continued their pursuit, with Brown just behind them.

The suspect ran into a crowded intersection, with traffic coming from two ways. The cars “parted like the Red Sea,” Dabney said, when confronted with the scene of a suspect fleeing uniformed Soldiers.

The young man made it across the street, but gave up when he turned around and saw Blake, who’s 5’10” and 210 pounds, and Dabney, 6’1” and 200 pounds, closing on him.

Dabney ensured the suspect wasn’t carrying a second weapon. Blake made sure the suspect, who they later found out had an outstanding warrant for a similar crime, was okay as they waited for Pemberton police to arrive.

Pemberton police were immediately appreciative, as were the employees and customers of the local pharmacy.

After the Soldiers returned from their unexpected adventure, members of the 372nd MP Company started calling them the Stupendous Six. First Sgt. Terry Boag, the unit’s top enlisted Soldier, said their teamwork was great, especially given that the unit is currently made up of MPs from across the 200th Military Police Command as it prepares for an upcoming deployment.

“They’re a top-notch group of Soldiers. It’s amazing how they’ve come together this fast and were able to work as a team to do what they did.”

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trained + ready STORY AND PHOTOS BY TIMOTHY HALE, U.S. ARMY RESERVE COMMAND

WEAPONS MARKSMANSHIP COMPETITION

on target U SA R M A R KSMEN H AVE STRON G SH OWI N G AT FOR SCOM

Sgt. Joseph Hall, with the 310th Psychological Operations Company and the U.S. Army Reserve Combat Marksmanship Program, engages targets on the third day of the U.S. Army Forces Command Weapons Marksmanship Competition Nov. 9, 2016, at Fort Bragg, N.C. The four-day FORSCOM competition features marksmen from the U.S. Army, U.S. Army Reserve, and the National Guard in events for the M9 pistol, the M4A1 rifle and the M249 SAW, or Squad Automatic Weapon, to recognize Soldiers who are beyond expert marksmen.

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FORT BRAGG, N.C. — Four Army Reserve marksmen were among the 48 competing at U.S. Army Forces Command’s (FORSCOM) second annual marksmanship competition, Nov. 8-10, 2016.

Master Sgt. Robert Mango, with the 9th Mission Support Command; Sgt. 1st Class Joel Micholick, with the 9th Battalion, Army Reserve Careers Division; Sgt. Joseph Hall, with the 310th Psychological Operations Company (Airborne), and Staff Sgt. Thomas Walsh, with the 744th Engineer Company, represented the Army Reserve in the competition.

Mango and Hall finished second in the Expert category using the M9 pistol and M4 rifle, respectively, while Micholick and Walsh, finished second and third, respectively, in the M249 squad automatic weapon (SAW) and M9 Novice categories. Mango, Micholick, and Hall are all members of the U.S. Army Reserve Combat Marksmanship Program while Walsh is hoping to make the team.

In addition to the Army Reserve marksmen, the four-day FORSCOM competition also featured marksmen from the active Army and the Army National Guard in events for the M9, M4, and M249, to recognize Soldiers who are beyond expert marksmen. The multi-tiered events challenged the competitors' ability to accurately and quickly engage targets in a variety of conditions and environments.

Command Sgt. Maj. Scott Schroeder, the FORSCOM command sergeant major, said that while this is a competition to see who is the best in the Army, ultimately this event will hopefully inspire individuals, and thereby their units, to become better with this basic Soldier skill – the ability to shoot and engage targets with lethal force.

“There is nothing more fundamental than being able to engage and destroy our enemies on the battlefield,” Schroeder said. “We do that with our weapons systems and it’s important to build these competencies in our leaders.”

Schroeder said this competition is different from others in that this event tests combat marksmanship

—the ability to adapt and overcome a particular situation while still putting lethal rounds downrange.

“We want to test combat marksmanship,” he said.

“We want to get troopers operating in the same conditions that they would be operating in combat.

“Competitions drive the way we train. So we want to take these Soldiers and have them go back to their unit leadership and tell them what they did here and we want them to drive their training to get better at these competitions, which will make us better in combat. That’s really what this is all about; improving individual and unit proficiency and that will help us in the future.”

All four Army Reserve marksmen fully understand the importance of individual and unit readiness. All four served in the active Army before moving into the Army Reserve and Mango, Micholick, and Hall all previously served in the Army Marksmanship Unit based at Fort Benning, Georgia.

“The competition was great with all the different scenarios – the stress shoots, the alleyways, everything,” Hall said. “It challenged us in every different style of shooting – stuff that you would see in combat to actual marksmanship. There were just so many different aspects of it; it was just a great time.”

Hall said the biggest take-away for him was to share what he learned when he returns to his unit to include shooting under pressure and time constraints.

“All the different scenarios – you can run through those with any Soldier out there,” Hall said. He added that this competition was more about the combat shooting than precision shooting.

“This teaches you a quick response in how to take your target down,” he said.

For Walsh, a former infantry Soldier and drill sergeant on active duty, now an Army Reserve combat engineer, said competitive shooting has made him a better Soldier and he is able to share those experiences with his fellow Soldiers.

“It’s nice for me as a prior 11-Bravo (infantry) to go into these units and say, ‘Hey, let’s take a step back and get back to the basics and become shooters again.”

Top left: Sgt. Joseph Hall makes a final adjustment on his M4 rifle before starting a event on the third day of the U.S. Army Forces Command Weapons Marksmanship Competition. Hall was the Overall Individual Service Rifle National Champion during the 2016 National Matches.The multi-tiered events challenged the competitors’ ability to accurately and quickly engage targets in a variety of conditions and environments.

“There is nothing more fundamental than being able to engage and destroy our enemies on the battlefield.”

— COMMAND SGT. MAJ. SCOTT SCHROEDER, FORSCOM COMMAND SERGEANT MAJOR

Soldiers need range time in order to become individually better, which benefits the entire unit, Walsh said.

“Each Soldier needs to be good on all the weapon systems not just their assigned weapon,” he said.

“My lowest private should be able to shoot a pistol and all the squad guns plus his M4 (rifle).”

Top right: Master Sgt. Robert Mango (center), with the 9th Mission Support Command and the U.S. Army Reserve Combat Marksmanship Program, engages moving targets at the U.S. Army Forces Command Weapons Marksmanship Competition. Mango was the winner of the NTI Rifle Match and was also the top competitor in the 2016 President’s Pistol Match.

Soldiers interested in joining the U.S. Army Reserve Combat Marksmanship Program, are encouraged to find out more online at https://armyreservemarksman.info or on social media at https://www.facebook.com/USARCMP WARRIOR CITIZEN

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MEDICAL READINESS TRAINING EXERCISE IN GHANA

hands that work together, heal together STORY AND PHOTOS BY MAJ. SATOMI MACK-MARTIN, 3RD MEDICAL COMMAND

Above: During the Medical Readiness Training Exercise 16-2, both Lt. Col. Tyson Becker (left), general surgeon, and Lt. Col. Scott Howard (center), oral surgeon for Brooke Army Medical Center Fort Sam Houston, Texas, work alongside Ghanaian medical students at the 37 Military Hospital, Accra, Ghana.

Right: Sgt. Daniel Soto (right), operating room specialist from Fort Hood, Texas, helps Sgt. Mark Holt (left), emergency medical specialist for Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, by using a laser pen to point to the next surgical instrument needed for a procedure during Medical Readiness Training Exercise 16-2 in Accra, Ghana.

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ACCRA, Ghana — Surgical lights shine brightly onto operating tables where the hands of Ghanaian and U.S. military doctors and nurses work side by side to treat patients over the course of three weeks this past February at Ghanaian Army's 37 Military Hospital.

Through the Medical Readiness Training Exercise 16-2 (MEDRETE), both militaries were able to

strengthen their medical treatment capabilities and capacities while conducting routine, trauma and surgical procedures.

MEDRETEs enable valuable medical training and experience to U.S. active and reserve component medical personnel. U.S. Army Africa in coordination with 3rd Medical Command (Deployment Support), the 7th Civil Support Command and the U.S. Embassy Ghana, partnered with the Ghanaian Defense Force to bring the MEDRETE to Ghana.

MEDRETE 16-2 allowed U.S. doctors and nurses to train in an austere environment, share medical procedures and build lasting relationships with Ghanaian medical professionals.

Chief of the Department of Anesthesia and Operative Services at Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, Col. Joseph Paulino worked as the lead perioperative nurse throughout the various operating rooms during MEDRETE 16-2.

“The purpose of the mission is to practice medicine and nursing in those austere environments,” Paulino said. “With some of the things, we don’t get the opportunity to do [them] until we are deployed, and as deployments start to shrink and shrink, we become less and less prepared to take care of America’s sons and daughters at the tip of the spear. So, we have to use these things and leverage them so that we’re ready to go when it’s our turn to get on a plane and head to other places,” he stated.

U.S. engagement with countries in Africa is not new. For the past few decades, the U.S. Government has partnered with African militaries in medical capacity-building events and various training engagements.

The main emphasis for MEDRETE 16-2 was building a partnership that would further crosstraining opportunities and interoperability.

“I’m proud of being a part of this mission,” said 1st Lt. Frank Goka, a mobilized U.S. Army Reserve Soldier with the 7238 Medical Support Unit assigned to Fort Hood, Texas, as a nurse case manager for the Soldier Readiness Processing station.

Goka, who also participated in MEDRETE 16-2, worked as a critical care nurse for the intensive care burn unit during the exercise.

Originally from Accra, Ghana, 1st Lt. Goka was trained as a nurse and worked at the 37th Military Hospital for eight years before he migrated to the U.S. in 2004.

“Coming back to my old fold is a real pleasure,” he said. “The pleasure was reciprocated by the Ghanaian folks here. They were so happy seeing me back home, and coming to partner with them.”

Sgt. 1st Class Solomon Mensah, an Active Guard Reserve Soldier from the 3rd Medical Command (Deployment Support) unit at Fort Gillem, Ga., participated in the MEDRETE as part of the command and control team for the exercise and served as a pay agent. Mensah stated he was originally from Keta, in the Volta Region of Ghana.

Mensah, along with the rest of the command and control team for the MEDRETE, Capt. Jatara Young and 1st Lt. Brian Elliott, Army Reserve Soldiers with the 3rd MCDS, presented a shipment of medical supplies to the 37 Military Hospital.

The replenishment of medical supplies provided by the U.S. Army consisted of syringes, gloves, gauzes and several other boxes of supplies used by American and Ghanaian doctors during the exercise.

Below: A shipment of medical supplies used by American Army doctors working alongside Ghanaian doctors during MEDRETE arrive as a replenishment to the 37 Military Hospital in Accra, Ghana.

1st Lt. Brian Elliott, part of the Medical Readiness Training Exercise 16-2 Command and Control Team and pay agent from the 3rd Medical Command (Deployment Support) unit at Fort Gillem, Ga., helps to unload a shipment of medical supplies as a replenishment to supplies used by U.S. Army and Ghanaian doctors working alongside each other.

“…as deployments start to shrink and shrink, we become less and less prepared to take care of America’s sons and daughters at the tip of the spear.”

— COL. JOSEPH PAULINO, CHIEF OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ANESTHESIA AND OPERATIVE SERVICES, BROOKE ARMY MEDICAL CENTER, FORT SAM HOUSTON, TEXAS

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training alongside our NATO allies and partners

Anakonda 16

by Lt. Col. Jefferson Wolfe, 7th Mission Support Command

future operations in Europe,” DeBlieck said.

“All the components were heavily involved and were doing a superb job. You couldn’t tell one component from another.”

Each component brings different skill sets to the exercise, said Lt. Col. Steven Dowgielewicz, commander of the active-duty 39th Transportation Battalion (Movement Control), headquartered for the exercise in Toru´n, Poland. An MCB regulates Army movement on main supply routes and alternate supply routes using common-user transportation assets.

For example, many of the Army Reserve truck drivers from the 428th Transportation Company drive trucks all over the United States in their civilian jobs. They are very skilled at securing their

Photo by Timothy L. Hale, U.S. Army Reserve Command

Kaiserslautern, Germany — Active-duty and reserve component forces from the United States are working with NATO allies and partners during Exercise Anakonda 16.

Brig. Gen. Arlan DeBlieck, deputy commanding general of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command and commanding general of the Army Reserve’s 7th Mission Support Command visited more than a half-dozen training sites across Poland. He spoke about interoperability to active and Reserve Soldiers, Polish military and other NATO allies and partners.

Anakonda 16 is a Polish-led training event that takes place every two years. The Polish national exercise seeks to train, exercise and integrate Polish national command and force structures into a joint, multinational environment. This year, more than 31,000 service members from 24 countries are taking part in the exercise, including more than 13,000 from the United States.

“It was the total Army in Europe leading an effort, establishing a baseline for how to do

cargo, because they lose money if the load arrives in less than perfect condition.

“It seems like small things, but that’s an expertise we don’t have,” he said.

However, Reserve component Soldiers may not know theater-specific things that their active-duty counterparts deal with every day, like how to get diplomatic clearances and customs clearances to travel from country to county in Europe, Dowgielewicz said.

So, exercises like this one allow the Reserve and Guard forces to learn, develop some expertise and grow, he added.

For Anakonda, one such Army Reserve unit has been the U.S. Army Reserve’s 635th Movement Control Team from Kansas, which is working at four locations around Poland, coordinating transportation by air, sea and rail.

“It’s a great opportunity for them,” Dowgielewicz said.

The Army Reserve’s 364th Expeditionary Sustainment Command was the tip of the spear for the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, working to ensure an organized flow of forces into Europe and providing sustainment to the troops, DeBlieck said.

Spc. Dan Bora, a petroleum supply specialist with the 716th Quartermaster Company, Jersey City, N.J., fuels a five-gallon gas can at the fuel farm during Exercise Anakonda 16 at the Drawsko Pomorskie Training Area, Poland. The 716th is the first Army Reserve unit to operate a fuel farm in Poland.

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Soldiers of the 361st Engineer Company from Warner Robins, Ga., sharpen their skills by constructing the Improved Ribbon Bridge on the Vistula River in Chelmno, Poland, as a part of Exercise Anakonda 2016. The IRB is a sectional floating bridge that can be used to create a full bridge or to ferry vehicles and equipment across a body of water.

Photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Andria Allmond

Left: U.S. Army Sgt. Erin Hodge works with Hungarian first responders to assess victims of a simulated vehicle crash during Exercise Anakonda Response 2016, at Papa Air Base.

the past, Anakonda has been a command post exercise for Polish forces.

“They’ve made a commitment to NATO and demonstrated their resolve by using Poland as an exercise venue,” DeBlieck said.

Wood has been working with Polish forces on a limited basis for this exercise, but he has worked with them in the past.

“From my previous experience and interaction with the Polish military I have found that they are very mission-focused and have a strong bias for action,” he said. “Gracious hosts and very welcoming, the Polish Military are excellent partners."

Photo by Staff Sgt. Brad Miller

The 364th ESC is normally aligned regionally to United States Pacific Command but came to Poland for Anakonda 16. The unit had to quickly become familiar with conditions in Europe.

The Army Reserve and National Guard headquarters staff members don’t work together every day as their active-duty counterparts do, Dowgielewicz said. When they arrive in theater, they need to get to know each other and the staffs from the units around them.

“For headquarters, you really need a spin-up period before they get here,” he said.

“It becomes a steep learning curve at the staff level.”

For Reserve component units, home station training focused on warfighting functional skills is essential, said Maj. Ryan M. Wood, the executive officer for the 7th MSC’s 209th Digital Liaison Detachment, in Bemowo Piskie, Poland, for the exercise.

“If I don’t know my craft as a fire support officer, how can I liaison the complex tasks required of the fires elements in both the U.S. and a foreign headquarters?” he said.

Polish forces had to learn how to integrate U.S. and NATO troops into their exercise. In

For Anakonda 16, the 209th was tasked to help interface with the Latvian military, Wood said.

“This is my first time working with them, and I am very impressed with their discipline and professionalism,” he said. “It is nice to see how interoperable our armies really are in planning and execution of land component tasks.”

The 209th DLD’s mission is to provide liaison between a U.S. headquarters, the 4th Infantry Division in Anakonda 16 and a foreign headquarters, in this case the Latvian Light Infantry Brigade. Their job is to ensure communication, mutual understanding and unity of purpose and action, Wood said.

“The 'digital’ portion of our title comes in the fact that we use Army mission command (computer) systems in which to conduct our liaison mission,” he said.

Reserve component units already in Europe, such as those in the 7th MSC, have a built-in advantage, Wood said.

“The DLDs have to be able to integrate with both the active component U.S. Army and a foreign headquarters,” he said. “This makes our integration challenging, but as a Reserve force stationed in Germany, we build confidence in our ability to communicate with foreign partners each day.”

Further, Wood’s civilian job is in the G-6 staff at United States Army Europe, but his previous job was as an exercise planner for USAREUR, and he still knows the USAREUR exercise planning staff.

As a result, Wood leveraged his civilian skills and relationships to enhance his Reserve job by writing the tasks for the DLDs taking part in Anakonda 16.

In addition, many of those Reserve component Soldiers had civil affairs skills, and were able to leverage experience in relationship-building and coordination to work with multiple countries and streamline the transportation and border crossing processes, Dowgielewicz said.

The bottom line is that everyone must use their skills to work together.

“Everybody was doing an excellent job of working together, including allies, partners and multiple components,” DeBlieck said after his tour of the exercise.

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PHOTO BY MASTER SGT. MICHEL SAURET, 200TH MILITARY POLICE COMMAND

trained + ready

Soldier readiness starts at home WASHINGTON, D.C. — Every day, decisions

BY MELISSA RUSSELL, ARMY RESERVE COMMUNICATIONS

Right: Spc. Gloria Camacho, 376th Human Resources Company, 311th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, spends time with Family after a deployment ceremony at Rickenbacker Reserve Center in Bell, Calif.

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PHOTO BY SGT. SCOTT AKANEWICH

Above: Family members and children hold signs to welcome home approximately 90 U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldiers from the 443rd Military Police Company, of Owings Mills, Maryland, after a roughly 10-month deployment to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Sept. 9, 2016.

impacting our Soldiers’ operational readiness are made at home. Finances, child care, diet and fitness are all choices demonstrating that military readiness is very much a Family matter. Comprised of less than one percent of the population, the well-being of

the geographically dispersed Reserve Components also depend on local communities, work, schools— and each other. Those are the connections—and the foundation—that Julie Luckey, an Army Reserve Senior Spouse, hopes to solidify over the next four years.

“There are so many programs out there, and the amount of information can be staggering,” said Luckey. “It’s hard to know where to start, especially when you don't have an identified support network.

It's important to access, understand and share the tools and resources available through both the Army and your local community.”

When Luckey learned her husband, Lt. Gen. Charles D. Luckey, had been selected to become the next Chief of Army Reserve and Commanding General, U.S. Army Reserve Command, she was “overwhelmed and humbled.” She hopes to turn the cross-country move into an opportunity to have a positive impact on Soldiers and Families. “I’ve been

PHOTO BY MASTER SGT. MICHEL SAURET, 200TH MILITARY POLICE COMMAND

given four years to try and make a difference, to link America’s Army Reserve Families together, and to make sure everyone is aware of the incredible network that exists to support them. Nobody should ever feel alone.”

Luckey characterizes the Family’s role in support of their Soldier as invaluable, but recognizes that between the demands of children, work and day-to-day responsibilities, the ability of an Army Reserve Family to self-identify as being critical to operational readiness can sometimes “fall into the white space.” She feels defining themselves as a member of the Army Reserve is such an important component of their sense of self and of their commitment to duty, honor and Country.

“Soldiers owe it to themselves and their Families to share what it means to be an American Soldier. As Soldiers, you must help your Family understand that they are a critical member of the finest institution in the world, the United States Army, and empower them to be active participants on the Team.”

“Knowledge is power,” she continued. “For me to best support my Soldier, I have to understand the mission, the demands and the set of responsibilities with which he is dealing. The more I know, the better positioned I am to help my Soldier and our Country.

As a Family member, never undervalue your role as an essential factor of the readiness equation. ” Luckey pointed out that it’s hard to separate the Citizen from the Soldier. “Even when my husband

find creative ways to enhance support and improve the readiness, resilience and well-being of every Army Reserve Family. While external forces continue to redefine what is required of our military and our Families, Luckey is passionate about her mission.

“My ultimate goal is to create a strong military community that is readily identifiable and accessible to all, to which every Soldier, spouse and child can turn for information, a connection...even a hug.

I want everyone to feel great pride in the fact they truly and selflessly represent America’s One Percent.”

Above: Spc. Monica Sanchez, a U.S. Army Reserve military police Soldier from the 443rd Military Police Company, of Owings Mills, Maryland, holds hands with her niece, Cubby, 2, after returning from a 10-month deployment to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Below: A Soldier from the 376th Human Resources Company embraces her son during a farewell ceremony for her upcoming deployment to Kuwait.

“As a Family member, never undervalue your role as an essential factor of the readiness equation.”

— JULIE LUCKEY, WIFE OF LT. GEN. CHARLES LUCKEY, CHIEF OF ARMY RESERVE AND COMMANDING GENERAL, U.S. ARMY RESERVE COMMAND

PHOTO BY CPL. TIMOTHY YAO, 311TH ESC PUBLIC AFFAIRS

e

JULIE LUCKEY, ARMY RESERVE SENIOR SPOUSE, TALKS FAMILY READINESS

was wearing his “civilian hat” as a practicing attorney in North Carolina, the Warrior Ethos imbued every aspect of his career and life. It’s a defining part of his character.”

Families, jobs and communities all play a role in the lives of geographically dispersed Reserve Component service members. Fort Family, Family Readiness Groups and Military OneSource are outstanding “one-stop-shops” for available resources, but Luckey is also reaching out across the DoD and into local communities as she strives to WARRIOR CITIZEN

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opportunities

PHOTO BY MASTER SGT. MARISOL WALKER, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, ARMY RESERVE

PHOTO BY SENIOR AIRMAN DILLON DAVIS

GROW YOUR SKILL SET

specialty Soldiers wear the warrant

BY MASTER SGT. THOMAS O’HARA, ARMY RESERVE COMMUNICATIONS

warrant positions/ military occupational specialties – Adjutant General – Military Police – Aviation – Ordnance – Chemical – Quartermaster – Engineer – Signal – Judge Advocate General – Transportation – Medical Service – Veterinary – Military Intelligence – Air Defense Artillery (including Cyber Defense positions)

FORT BELVOIR, Va. — If you are currently serving your country in any military service, in any rank, and are looking for an opportunity to grow your skill set and better prepare for life after your career, the Army Reserve has put out a warrant for you.

Currently, the Reserve has more than 1,000 vacancies in warrant positions through Active Guard Reserve, Troop Program Unit and Individual Mobilization Augmentee assignments across all military occupational specialties (see sidebar). Chief Warrant Officer 5 Russell P. Smith, Command Chief Warrant Officer of the U.S. Army Reserve, is looking to fill those billets with the best the nation has to offer.

“Army Reserve warrant officers are typically the service’s most self-aware and adaptive technical experts, combat leaders and trainers,” said Smith.

“Men and women who are confident warriors, innovative problem solvers, highly skilled on the most current of technologies and unique in their ability to develop and lead specialized Soldier teams.”

“Candidly, we also get to do fun things,” Smith added. “Warrants fly aircraft, drive boats, solve crimes, as well as perform specialized work in intelligence and warfare planning.”

“The Reserve needs stellar non-commissioned officers, including those from sister services and active duty, willing to take that next challenge,” said Smith. “In addition to NCOs, junior commissioned officers disenfranchised with their duties or field grade officers interested in obtaining new and more easily

Top left: Chief Warrant Officer 2 Marcus Cargill, 284th Engineer Company vertical engineer, and Sgt. Chad Spencer, 409th Engineer Company vertical engineer, level a bond-beam cinder block for a school wall during exercise Beyond the Horizon 2016, in Guatemala.

Top right: Chief Warrant Officer 3 Brian Pavlik, 1-214th General Support Aviation Battalion, Bravo Company, keeps a watchful eye during a flyover near Mount Rainier, Wash., on board a CH-47 Chinook.

The 1-214th GSAB has a unique mission that involves working with the Mt. Rainier National Park and provides support for search and rescue missions as well as fire rescue missions in the area.

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WARRIOR CITIZEN

transferable skill sets as they prepare to transition into the civilian world, can trade their current position for a warrant position without losing their time served at the higher rank.”

“Between specialized training as a warrant and our public-private partnership program, this is an opportunity that can greatly assist Soldiers in finding a well-paying career to go along with service in the Army Reserve,” said Smith.

Those not looking to transition into the private sector but faced with impending retirement in their current rank can extend their careers as a warrant officer. Typically, serving as a warrant allows Soldiers to serve until age 60 (62 with a waiver). In addition, there are accession bonuses of $20,000 or student loan bonuses of up to $30,000 (check your eligibility: http://www.usarec.army.mil/hq/warrant/WOgeninfo_ mos.shtml ), and training and practice programs to help increase General Technical scores to meet eligibility requirements are also available.

In an era with shrinking national resources and many mid-career officers heading out the door due to mandated down-sizing, filling the vacant Army Reserve warrant officer positions with experienced and eligible Soldiers across all ranks and service is a way to extend an individual career, better prepare for life in the private sector and still fulfill a much-needed national role. “It’s a win for the Soldier and the Reserve,” said Smith.

For those already in the Army Reserve, talk with your Army Reserve Career Counselor about opportunities available to you, or visit: http://stayarmyreserve. army.mil/cmo/cmo_wo1-2.html for more information.

For those on active duty, considering service in the Army Reserve through the Warrant Officer program, contact your local Reserve Component Career Counselor or contact the RCCC Help Desk at 502-613-4200 for additional assistance.

Editor Warrior Citizen 6075 Goethals Road Building 1908, Ofc 302 Fort Belvoir, Va 22060-5231

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID MIAMI FL PERMIT #3528

Got ideas?

The Army Reserve invites great ideas that could help us be a better, more efficient, optimal, high speed, low drag organization.

The Army is setting aside funding for studies to explore good ideas in the Army Studies Program for analytical agencies, such as RAND, IDA, MITRE. We need your help to develop study proposals that reflect the Chief of Army Reserve’s core messages:

Adapting to today’s global security environment Maintaining and sustaining readiness with constrained resources Building and sustain the most capable, combat-ready, and lethal federal reserve force in the history of the Nation Enhancing readiness for early entry/set-the-theater enabling requirements The Office of the Chief, Army Reserve Program Analysis and Evaluation Director needs your one paragraph narrative no later than April 15, 2017. If you are lucky enough to be selected, you will be contacted to further develop the study proposal.

Your ideas should clearly explains the problem and potential solutions to the problem. Request you have your first line supervisor endorse your proposal.

Submit your proposal to usarmy.usarc.ocar.mbx.army-studies@mail.mil